Winner of the Rockower Award, the highest honor in Jewish journalism, this blog contains random musings of a journalist, father, husband, son, friend, poodle-owner, Red Sox fan and occasionally-ranting rabbi, taken from Shabbat-O-Grams, columns, speeches, letters, sermons and thin air. "On One Foot," the column, appears regularly in the New York Jewish Week, as well as a blog for the "Times of Israel."

Friday, September 11, 2009

9/11 and Iran

As we commemorate today the anniversary of 9/11, we must remember the lessons of that tragic day. We need to remain vigilant and proactive in the face of real dangers, while also understadning that the strain of hatred that attacked us that day was not representative of Islam as a whole.Iran is not Al Queda, but the hatred is the same. The boasts are the same. And the potential for destruction is even greater. Here are today's foreboding headlines about Iran, culled from the Daily Alert:

Time to Get Serious about Helping Iran's Opposition - John P. HannahThe chances that diplomacy will convince this Iranian regime to change course and truly abandon its nuclear ambitions seem next to nil. Yet a mass protest movement has risen (and persisted) that has rocked the Iranian regime to its core and is genuinely threatening its collapse. That movement's survival, strengthening, and eventual success has become the most viable option available for satisfactorily resolving the Iranian nuclear crisis short of war. The administration's entire strategy with respect to Iran has been premised on getting the current regime into talks and negotiating some sort of deal. Working with its allies, the U.S. needs to make clear now that the Islamic Republic will not get away cost-free if it moves against the opposition's top le aders. The writer, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, was national security advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney from 2005-2009. (Weekly Standard)

Any U.S. Distancing from Israel Strengthens Islamists - David Makovsky (New York Jewish Week) In the post-9/11 world, there are numerous cases of converging interests between Israel and Arab regimes, shaped by a perception of common enemies. After the 2007 Israeli bombing of the Syrian reactor, the Arab regimes remained silent, with none condemning the action, indicating their displeasure with Syria's growing ties to Iran. Arab states led by Saudi Arabia were horrified that Hizbullah went to war with Israel in 2006 without the vote of the Lebanese government in a unilateral decision, facilitated by Iranian weapons. The Arabs wanted Hizbullah to be defeated, not to emerge stronger from the conflict. With Iran's support for Hamas, combined with Iran's emerging nuclear program, Arab leaders see an Iran that appears to be on the march. At the start of the Gaza conflict last December, Egyptian and Saudi foreign ministers publicly blamed Hamas as being responsible for the crisis. Egypt still refuses to open its border to Gaza on a regular basis.

The Arab states fear that if Tehran gained a bomb, it could lead to the provision of nuclear materials to non-state actors by Iran. They also recognize that a nuclear Iran could engage in much greater coercion of its neighbors.

If the U.S. distanced itself from Israel, this would be the greatest windfall imaginable to the strongest Islamist elements, whether al-Qaeda or Iran, who would see it as a validation. It would lend a sense of momentum or inevitability to their cause, and countries throughout the region would view future U.S. actions through this lens. Therefore, a strong U.S.-Israel relationship remains key and a cornerstone for Mideast peace.
The writer is the Ziegler Distinguished Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.